By Phil Hecken
The latest contest to create a fauxback jersey (similar to that created by the Tampa Rays to connote a uniform which would have been worn by the team, had the team existed at the time) received what I believe to be a record number of entries — 98 to be exact. So the viewing and voting for this contest will be broken down into FOUR separate groups, with 24 or 25 entries per group. The top FOUR vote getters from each group will advance to the finals. The idea was to design a fauxback jersey for a team which did not exist prior to 1990 (you can see the full post here). Most of the entrants respected this rule, although a few may have gone off the boards, so to speak. You readers & voters can take that into account as we reveal the submissions.
There’s a LOT to get to today — so below will be the first 25 submissions (in alpha-order), numbered and labeled with the team (and year if applicable) the concepter is throwing back to, as well as a description, if provided; following the submissions, we’ll have voting. As you scroll through the graphics, be sure to make note of the concept(s) you like — you’ll be able to vote for as many as you like (but you can only vote once). You guys know the drill by now (click to enlarge, etc.), so let’s get started!
1. Jeff Bakken (1973 DC Nationals)
Description in image
2. John Baranowski (1930s Columbus Blue Jackets)
No description provided
3. Tim Batzinger (1917 New England Revolution)
New England Revolution 1917 fauxback, based on the design of the first New England flag.
4. Garrett Beatty (1970 Jacksonville Jaguars)
My name’s Garrett Beatty and I’m a sophomore in high school. Funny story: I actually made a faxback jersey for the Royals and didn’t realize the year rule until after I finished. But here’s a Jacksonville Jaguars one. If I do win, is it possible to get the jersey in the long-sleeved version? If not that’s fine. Made a long sleeved and normal sleeved version of the jersey.
5. Tom Bierbaum (1966-67 Toronto Raptors)
For the 1966-67 season, the faux Toronto Raptors, inspired by the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons, positioned a winged raptor on their jersey, just as the expansion Falcons had done earlier that fall.
6. Blake Pass (1979 Florida Marlins)
No description provided
7. David Bloomquist (1967 Jacksonville Jaguars)
Introducing the 1967 Jacksonville Jaguars Fauxbacks
8. Eric Bogh (1983 California Angels)
I am submitting a fauxback jersey for the 1983 California Angels. I realized late that this team didn’t qualify, but I wanted to send this along anyways.
I always liked the baby blue away uniforms and thought the Angels would have been a great candidate for them. I’ve created a new cap logo, inspired by the Expos and Brewers of the time, where there is an interlocking C and A. Lastly, I incorporated yellow as a secondary color, as a nod to the popularity of the color at the time and in present day uniforms.
Thank you for hosting these contests and sorry for not following the rules.
9. Ian Borkowski (1969 Miami Marlins)
1969 Miami Marlins road fauxback, vest style jersey with blue undershirt, which is adorned with MLB 100th Anniversary patch. Note the NOB below the number, inspired by the mid 1960s Cincinnati Reds.
10. David Britt (1962 Washington Nationals)
I’m not really a fan of any post 90s teams, but I like the Nats’ unis, and I like red pinstripes, so I thought I would throwback to 1962. They adopted these until they switched to red pullovers in the 70’s in my alternate history.
11. Brittany Brown (1974 Anaheim Ducks)
In the tradition of fauxbacks, this Anaheim Duck jersey is based on the California Golden Seals uniforms from 1974 while utilizing the Duck’s original colors.
12. Mike Cahalan (1976 Toronto Raptors)
In an award winning 1976 interview with legendary anchorman, Ron Burgundy, Toronto player/owner, Jackie Moon, revealed that the name ‘Raptors’ came from a dream he had about man-eating dinosaurs that he vowed to make into a blockbuster movie that he would call “Love Me Sexy Dinosaur Park”.
13. Adam Cain (1946 Miami Marlins)
Here’s my take on the 1946 Miami Marlins, the 50th anniversary of the city (I would have thought Miami was much older than that).
14. Michael Candelmo (1984 Colorado Rockies)
The Denver area lost their original Colorado Rockies after the 1982 season. It would be another full decade before the current Colorado Rockies returned in the form of the purple-hued baseball team. This faux-back is era-appropriate with contrasting shoulder/sleeve panels. The color scheme/logos are based directly on the hockey club that many home-town fans were surely missing at the time.
15. Erik Ceja (1980s Anaheim Mighty Ducks)
80’S mighty ducks shirt!
16. Gary Chanko (1976 Miami Marlins)
For the 1976 season the Marlins introduced the legendary “collared” jersey. The style was popular among the players and fans and remained unchanged until 1980. The Chicago White Sox attempt with a similar jersey style proved a disaster and was quickly abandoned.
17. Sean Connor (1975 Miami Marlins)
I’ve got a 1975 Miami Marlins road jersey for you. In his first year of free agency, it would have made sense for Jim Hunter to sign with “The Fish.”
18. Matt Cooksley (1949 Dallas Stars)
Fauxback for 1949 Dallas Stars (although could work for many years of the original six era).
19. Colin Davis (1962 Marquette Lacrosse)
Thanks For letting me do a Lacrosse jersey! I enjoyed drawing this.
20. Gavin Davis (1990 Vegas Golden Knights)
Description on image
21. Ethan Dimitroff (1989 Oklahoma City Thunder)
The colors are the same as the current Thunder which I don’t see as being unrealistic before the teal takeover of the 90’s. This is a road jersey with a block lettering. I made some use of the yellow which is in the logo. The trim of the jersey I used some Native American pattern as a simple nod to the region without going over board. I included the NBA logo in its current place as it would be worn in present day since it is a “fauxback”. Why 1989 you ask? Because it was the year I was born lol. Sorry if I made you feel old.
22. Craig Dudley (1970 Columbus Blue Jackets)
My submission is the “1970” Columbus Blue Jackets – NHL. I figured I would create the design using throwback materials (markers). The Jackets began play in 2000 so this is a 30 fauxback.
23. Leo Dwyer (1972 Toronto Raptors)
1972 Toronto Raptors.
T is for Toronto!
24. Bob Farrigan (1936 Atlanta Falcons)
Fauxback jersey for the Atlanta Falcons 1936 season.
Inspirations;
Football-
· Atlanta Falcons 1968
· Boston Indigenous Americans 1935
· Cleveland Native Americans 1931
· Chicago Cardinals 1927
Baseball-
· Typeface based on the Atlanta Crackers deco “A”
25. Rodney Finnegan (1976-77 Colorado Rockies)
Attached is my entry for the Fauxback Jersey contest. It is a baseball jersey for the current National League leading Colorado Rockies throwing back to the NHL’s cellar-dwelling 1976-1977 Colorado Rockies. The jersey is intended to be used as a road or “third” (special occasion) jersey.
And there you have it — the first group of entries for the Fauxback Jersey Contest. Voting is below (remember, you can vote for as many designs as you’d like, but you may only vote one time).
Let’s have a big hand for the first set of contestants. Let them know what you think (and maybe even lobby for your favorites) in the comments below!
So, I was on a Podcast…
…the other day.
I joined HOVG Proprietor Shawn Anderson and his sidekick Lou Olsen to discuss…wait for it…uniforms.
As they describe it,
The weekend editor (and “bench coach”) for the Uni Watch Blog talks to the boys about those hideous things the Arizona Diamondbacks are wearing, the best (and worst) uniforms in the Majors, why baseball needs to tone down their special jerseys and why 1969 might have been the greatest looking year on the diamond.
You can check it out above or click here.
I’ve done several podcasts before, but I think this one turned out pretty well. If you have some spare time, give it a listen — love to get some feedback! Thanks.
And now a few reminders from Paul: Hi there. In case you missed it yesterday, I had a new ESPN piece about how the rapper/actor Ice Cube collaborated with uniform designer/historian Todd Radom to create the uniforms for BIG3, the new 3-on-3 basketball league. You can check that out here.
Also: Four new Naming Wrongs designs have just launched. You can see all of the new designs here, you can read more about them here, and you can order them in the Naming Wrongs shop. (They’re also cross-listed in the Uni Watch shop, where card-carrying Uni Watch members can get 15% off. If you don’t already have the discount code, get in touch and I’ll hook you up.)
Also-also: The third batch of StripeRite socks is now available. Most of the designs from the first and second batches are available as well.
Uni Watch News Ticker
By Phil
Baseball News: Here’s a great sign from TheGoalNet from his hometown in the Berkshires. … As you may be aware, two of my favorite MiLB teams are the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs and the Fresno Grizzlies — and the two teams recently had a contest in which the loser would wear the winner’s caps for a game. The Pigs won, so the Fresno Grizzlies had to wear Iron Pigs Bacon hats after losing the bet. They added their own twist by adding the Carnitas patch on the side (h/t Aaron Wiens). … “Ads on uniforms! No leagues! Goodbye Oakland and Tampa Bay! They seem like mammoth changes that would be difficult for MLB to implement.” These and more are discussed in this article, which itself looks at ESPN’s Tim Kurkjian’s piece on the look of baseball 20 years from now. Recommended reading. … A Colorado Rockies blog asks, “What nicknames, patches, or other personalizations should Rockies players do with their uniforms on Players Weekend?” … Looks like the Major League All-Star Game Home Run Derby caps will be black (from Pete Butera). — However, there are also these caps now available in the MLB shop — possibly for the use in the Futures Game? (from Niko Goutakolis). It would appear to be so (h/t Nicholas Schiavo). … The El Paso Chihuahuas have unveiled their flag desecration caps & jerseys for this Sunday. … It was David Ortiz night at the Fens last evening, and of course, the Sawx wore red tops (from Funhouse). … “Pitching coach Charles Nagy has the wrong hat on,” notes Evan Riggs. He adds, “And it’s an Angels hat that I’ve never seen before, period.” … The Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters are honoring the 1962 NPB Champion Toei Flyers with throwback jerseys for weekend Legend Series (from Max G.). … Do the Durham Bulls know about this?: “Fun sign at the Upper Valley Nighthawks’ ballpark in White River Junction, Vt.” says Tris Wykes. “They’re a New England Collegiate Baseball League team.” (If you weren’t aware, there’s a fairly famous sign down in Durham.) … I’m trying to figure out why a “fan” would buy a teal Mariners jersey with a “GO CUBS” NOB (from Lawrence Morgan”). … A new minor league team that will call Fayetteville, North Carolina, home, but what will the team be called? You can help the team choose a name (from James Gilbert).
NFL/CFL/College/High School/Football News: On some type of Canadian TV show taping, some New Orleans Saints’ were seen sporting old collars and “Michael Lewis wearing the once worn gold jersey (a personal favorite),” (from Ray Garofalo III”). … BYU Football will honor Hall of Fame Coach LaVell Edwards with this uniform patch this season (from Paul R. Cherrington). … Here’s how it will look on the jersey. … Also, BYU is going to be retiring the jerseys of Marc Wilson, Robbie Bosco and Luke Staley. … What should Rutgers fans expect in new football uniforms? Chris Ash explains. … There was recently an image floating around of a matte black helmet, supposedly for Georgia. Turns out, thankfully, it’s a hoax. … IndyCar driver and rookie Ed Jones is wearing this Walter Payton tribute helmet (here’s a look at the back) in this weekend’s Kohler Grand Prix at Road America in Wisconsin (also posted in Grab Bag). From Morgan Webster. … The Alfred University Saxons have new white jerseys (via Paul). … People always like to comment on how player use their cell phones on the field after games in today’s Day & age, but here’s a Youngstown State player in 1994 walking around with one of those big camcorders after winning the National Championship (from Robert Hayes). The players are also wearing some kind of 125th anniversary patch.
Hockey News: Tweeter (and reader) Nick Lineback says of these Jaws-themed jerseys, “Late entry candidate for jersey of the year. They’re gonna need a bigger jersey?” … Here’s just a wonderful 1975 image of a color vs. color game between the Los Angeles Kings and the California Golden Seals (image from Vintage Sports Images). … Tweeter Patrick Thomas saw this NY Rangers tweet of their new jersey and notes that the gray collar is gone. … Holy crap: The Golden Knights name and logo still officially do not belong to the team, leading the franchise to advance this month the legal battle to own its trademark rights (from Tommy Turner). … Goalies wear captaincy patches too! “Collegiate, but are you aware of this example? Cal Petersen of Notre Dame,” says Mike Engle. … With all the uni unveilings this past week, I wasn’t sure if we’d seen this one, so apologies if it’s already been posted: here’s a look at the Tampa Bay Lightning road (white) jersey. Also, the Lightning’s anniversary patch will be on upper right chest of home & road (half of season) sweater (from John Sabol). … UND will have their new Fighting Hawks logo on their hockey sweaters. … Yikes — not the best job affixing a nameplate on the newest Florida Panther (from Greg Rajan). … “Based off this photo, looks like the Hawks sticking with the two layer sewn twill numbers on game jerseys,” says Steve Jankowski.
NBA/G-League/College/Basketball News: In case you missed it, on Thursday, the Phoenix Suns unveiled a FIFTY seasons anniversary patch (from multiple folks). The teams also unveiled several alternate anniversary patches, including one in Spanish (from Conrad Burry). … Here’s a look at a Boston Celtics jersey with a GE ad patch. Robert Hayes notes it’s likely still an adidas jersey. — Here’s a look at the back with the Jerry West logo on the shoulder (from Brad Tatum). … Here’s the Golden State Warriors Championship patch (from The Emblem Source). … This isn’t incredibly shocking, but Lonzo Ball, the LA Lakers No. 1 Pick (and No. 2 overall) pick confirmed he will continue to wear the No. 2 he wore with UCLA with the Lakers. … “Lonzo Ball wearing pre-2014 adidas home jersey…” says Jay Appaji who asks, “is that a Derek Fisher jersey? Lol”. This was also noticed by Football Guy.
Soccer News: Liverpool’s Roberto Firmino is changing from number 11 to 9 next season. The club has offered to have him sign for free any eligible 2017/18 #11 Firmino jerseys that were purchased before the change. On top of that, The Anfield Shop, an American LFC retailer is offering $50 rebates or gift cards for those who purchased #11 jerseys (from Patrick Walsh). … “Spotted in NYC,” says James Beattie. “Will likely be Tottenham Hotspur’s home kit in 2017-18.”
Grab Bag: Brazilian volleyball team Olympikus stylist Renan Serrano took used jerseys from Brazil’s biggest victories and cut them into smaller pieces and then transformed them into a new jersey. This new jersey would be the only one in world (from Jeremy Brahm). … This will be…interesting: Citing religious refusal of adoption rule, California bans state travel to Texas: California state agencies, universities and commissions won’t be allowed to send their employees to Texas after the California attorney general declared a Texas law discriminatory. Submitter Josh Hinton asks, “No public university from California can play in Texas. Does that mean that if UCLA wins their region they can’t go to the final 4?” … IndyCar driver and rookie Ed Jones is wearing this Walter Payton tribute helmet (here’s a look at the back) in this weekend’s Kohler Grand Prix at Road America in Wisconsin (also posted in Football). From Morgan Webster. … Our pal Douggie Keklak saw this video of the 1972 Munich Olympics and asks, “Is that a Star of David as decimal? A memorial to the tragedy in those games??” … BFBS wrestling singlet for the Tar Heels (from James Gilbert). … Check out this article from NatGeo: “From Blood-Soaked Sand to Retractable Roofs: A History of Stadiums” (great find by Dale Alison, who adds “Didn’t know if you saw this. Impressive? Certainly whimsical and obviously expensive.”) … adidas has nearly doubled its US sneaker market share ”” at Nike’s expense (thanks, Brinke).
And that’s it for today. Thanks to everyone who submitted for the Fauxback Jersey contest. If you haven’t already done so, don’t forget to vote for your favorites! I’ll have our second (of FOUR) sets tomorrow, so make sure you check back then. And if you have a few spare minutes, give the ‘cast a listen too! Catch ya on the morrow…but until then…
Follow me on Twitter @PhilHecken.
Peace.
“If Connecticut had a demonym that wasn’t awkward and terrible, I would definitely use it.”
— Jon Rose
Nearly all of the Marlins fauxbacks prove that they definitely need to be in some combination of teal and orange. The teal and black they originally used was also fine, but adding orange into the mix would make it better. The current black and orange sets they use now do not match the team or city at all. Definitely time for an update.
Those teal and orange caps and jerseys look sweet. C’mon, Marlins. Dump the black and replace it with teal. You know you want to.
Ironically, a baseball-oriented site this week had a picture of the original teal-heavy Marlins uniforms, with the comment that these might be the ugliest uniforms ever. And while a few commenters stuck up for the teal, others said the Marlins only started looking good when they emphasized black. I didn’t get around to commenting myself, but I’ve only liked the Marlins’ look when they were mostly teal with just a touch of black. As a kid, I designed a Miami baseball team that was light blue and orange and I really liked the look. So I agree completely, teal and orange for the Marlins.
a picture of the original teal-heavy Marlins uniforms, with the comment that these might be the ugliest uniforms ever
I weep for that person. To be devoid of the appreciation of teal is to lead a sad existence.
I did love the black brim on the Marlins cap. Once teal became the secondary color, though, they lost me.
Black is a great primary color…for Pittsburgh, not Miami. #BringBackTheTeal
Agreed that the black brim looked cool on the Marlins’ teal cap. And it’s ironic that, if one were to argue that teal may have been overused in the ’90s (not a point I necessarily agree with), it was never more appropriate than when used with a Miami team, especially the Marlins.
I really don’t understand the comment about “Angels hat I’ve never seen before..”….looks like the batting practice/spring training hat…or did I miss something?
You haven’t missed anything.
They should make those Jacksonville Jaguar jerseys that Garrett designed for the contest the permanent jersey of the Jaguars. Very classic design, clean, and crisp. Love the stripes. A winner.
His jersey design left off the TV numbers on the sleeves or shoulders. Only the Cincinnati Bengals had jerseys without TV numbers (until 1980 when they were added).
Agreed! Would give them a classy look.
In this case the first is the best, those Nats fauxbacks are sweet. Sort of a mashup of the Expos and Bingo Long.
I submitted a Nats fauxback, which should show up later, but now I almost wish I hadn’t. Mr. Bakken nailed the team, the city, and the era with that one. I’m not sure I’d call it the best, just because so many other entries this week were outstanding, but I sure don’t expect to see a Nats concept that I’d rank ahead of this one.
This fauxback jersey contest is my favorite thing ever.
At first I skimmed past Gavin Davis’ design for the 1990 Vegas Golden Knights because of the presentation, thinking “Oh, this is just a kid drawing with crayon”. But I’m glad I went back and clicked on it, read the description, and looked more closely at the design. It would really fit in with the garish designs of the 90s, and it earned my vote.
Nice design by Bob Farrigan (1936 Atlanta Falcons). Looks realistic for that time.
I agree with you, Will. One could easily envision Bob’s logo evolving into its future versions as well. That’s what really stood out about the design.
I dunno. It looks a little 1936 Germany to me.
I also thought it had similarities to the Nazi eagle, but before the war that design might not have had the negative connotations it did after the war. I could see something like that being used at that time.
Garrett Beatty’s Jaguar uniforms are clearly the best. The epitome of what a football jersey should look like.
I liked Garrett Beatty’s Jaguars concept the most. Really feels like its from the 70s.
I did a Marlins concept and used the same font as Blake Pass. That was funny for me to see. Mine will probably be on next weekend.
Regarding the pitching coach on the Angels wearing a hat that the poster never saw – that hat is listed on the MLB site and it could also be the spring training hat from this year. The spring training logo would be on the opposite site.
I’m as curmudgeonly on flag etiquette as anybody – reallly kind of an irrational extremist on the point – but those El Paso Chihuahuas jerseys and caps aren’t flag-desecration. Neither the jersey nor the cap appears to use the flag, or any part of the flag. The jersey has stars on blue, sure, but they’re light blue stars, not white. It has a flaggy motif, but that’s not the flag. Call it jingoistic or pandering or what have you, but it’s not actually desecrating the flag. Unless there’s a flag patch on the side of the cap that we don’t see in the promo graphic, there’s nothing about the Chihuahuas uni that violates the U.S. Flag Code or traditional flag etiquette.
I think I was more concerned with my craft than my concept. Lol. Nice job everyone, particularly Garrett
Your ’67 Jag’s was great too.
I really liked Garrett’s as well, and agree above it should be their real uni. Yours would make a great real alt uni for them.
Both are better than what they team currently wears. Which reflects your talents & their bad taste. ;-0
Thanks for that 🙂
Oh wow! How crazy that the Marlins were such a popular team to use for this event?? Great stuff, and some stiff competition!
Wearing a Mariners jersey with “Go, Cubs” on it is not difficult to explain. Many people have divided loyalties.
A good friend of mind spent his childhood in Oakland, lived in New York for decades, and now is back in the Bay Area. He supports the A’s and Yankees equally. He therefore could conceivably wear link.
That Mariners jersey with the Cubs slogan is just another way to express loyalty to two teams simultaneously.
It’s a jersey foul.
If you want to express dual loyalty, wear a contrasting cap.
Excellent concept for a contest (so, bravo Phil!) and a tremendous first set of submissions (so, bravo all participants!). Really looking forward to the next three sets. Again, excellent job by all involved — thanks so much for taking the time & making the effort!
Looks like another rule besides the pre-1990 one may have been bent from my interpretation.
Just above the “THE RULES:” on June 10th.
“The only catch is you cannot just blatantly rip off another team like the Rays did. You need to be original (though you can certainly use past design style elements and cues for whatever team and year you choose).”
If I’d have known that an entry like #11 would have been okay, I would have kept the striping style of what my fauxback entry (not in today’s batch) was originally inspired by. After I thought I was done ,I re-read the rules and information above the rules and decided last minute that I need to change up the striping.
Guess I could have emailed for more clarification but unfortunately didn’t think of it at the time and was running out of free time to complete it.
Yeah, if you’re going to have rules, then violating them should have consequences. If it’s just, “this is what Phil would prefer, but feel free to do whatever you want”, then that should be stated as such. But when you use language like “you cannot”, then those entries that break the rules should be disallowed. If you want to show those designs as a “hey, look, here are some other designs we received which aren’t eligible to win”, then that would be fine. But if it really wasn’t a rule, it shouldn’t have been stated as a rule.
I agree with your comments about breaking the rules. Only original concepts should be allowed! There’s nothing original about #25, it’s just a rip off of the NHL Rockies. If Phil reads these comments, hopefully he does the right thing and doesn’t allow straight rip offs.
That video with Dave Wottle in the 1972 Olympics seems interesting, and I think I have and answer to the clip. That clip showed the elapsed time with what appears to be a Star of David as the decimal. But on closer inspection, you will notice that inside of the six-pointed star is the letter “J”. That “J” stand for Junghans, a German watch/clock maker, which was the official timekeeper of the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich.
link
link
Looking at the Junghans logo, it normally had 8 points, while the one used on TV during the Olympics had 6 stars, just like the Star of David. My guess is that, Junghans had to simplfy the logo so it would be legible on TV.
As for the logo being a tribute for the Israeli team after the Munich Massacre, link , I am sorry to say that the “J” logo was used prior to the attack on Sept. 4 & 5, 1972
Proof: 1972 Women’s 100M Meter Finals. From September 2,1972
link
link
I hope this clears everything up.
Great job on the Fauxback Jersey Contest guys, some really cool concepts. I voted for Jeff Bakken. I grew up right outside Washington DC in Maryland and thought those jerseys would also look great on Warner Wolfe’s 1973 celebrity softball team, just replace the DC with a WW.
I read right here on Uni Watch the other day that my school “Arizona” will be getting new uniforms after continually having the ugliest uniforms in the Pac 12. If the new ones end up being just as bad maybe Phil can call an emergency jersey design contest for Uni Watch readers to come up with new Arizona Uniforms, then I can fed ex the top three vote getters to the U of A athletic dept for an emergency intervention to save us from another generation of the horrible unis that Nike provides them
That Brazilian volleyball jersey is nothing like I expected. Cut them into smaller pieces? Like thread size pieces? How do yellow and white jerseys turn into a green jersey? This should be described as recycling the threads in old jerseys.
Kings/Seals wasn’t really colour on colour. The Kings home jerseys were gold at that time. Their road jerseys were purple.